CHICAGO — Xavier Tillman finally got to make his Celtics debut weeks after he joined the team ahead of the trade deadline. A sore knee kept him out of action ahead of the All-Star break, but the week off helped him fully recover just in time to play in Thursday’s blowout win over the Bulls.
While the past few weeks have certainly helped, it’s going to be a work-in-progress for the big man. The C’s hope Tillman can be a contributor for the rest of the season and potentially playoffs, so there’s a lot of learning ahead of him. But the big man already knows how he’s going to be contribute to what’s been the best team in the NBA.
“My role here, as far as what I can do, is definitely bringing the energy, crashing the glass, defending at a high level and getting those guys to move is my strength and stuff like that,” Tillman said. “As far as my stint and stuff like that. We’re a stay-ready team, so that’s what we do.”
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Tillman’s defense should fit right into the Celtics as a backup big man. That side of the ball is especially important because he gives the C’s some versatility. He can play similar to an Al Horford where he can guard a traditional big man. Tillman won’t be asked to score often considering the Celtics personnel, so that’s why he’ll look to be a spark off the bench.
Tillman played in three minutes in his C’s debut, putting up two points. So it was a nice dip into the water when it comes to wearing his new No. 26 jersey. But the debut is the easy part — next is making an impact during highly-competitive situations.
There’s another adjustment, too: Being on a title contender. The Grizzlies have been competitive in the past two seasons, but they’ve only been to the second round. This year, they were ravaged by injuries, meaning the players had to reset expectations. The C’s, of course, have made deep playoff runs almost every year, so Tillman will need to adjust his play based on those other factors. And it appears he’s already got a good handle on that.
“My mentality was always getting better when I was with Memphis, especially once we saw the season probably was not going the way we want to,” Tillman said. “And over here, it’s more so of playing to my strengths to help us win. Obviously you want to expand on your game. But at the same time, we’re on a mission to do stuff, as well. So it’s like playing to my strengths and strengthening the stuff that I want to expand on my game.”
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